Out Alone
by Only Sometimes
Summary: When Ginny starts going out alone, her life and behavior change in ways she didn't see coming.


This is given the NHEG, which is the No Happy Ending Guarantee.  
This was inspired by and written as I watched the music video for Rihanna's song Unfaithful. Which is a pretty good song for those of you who've never heard it.

I, obviously, am not the owner of this lovely universe.

And feel free to review.

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"Going out again tonight?"

"Yep."

"With Hermione?"

"Girls from work."

At least, that was how it had started. The first time, Ginny had put on a dress, done her hair up and her make up so she could actually just go out and get a drink with the girls from work.

Deana, Piper, and Hannah had talked her into it, but Harry encouraged it, too. It was new job, a new life, new friends. The war was over, there was reason to celebrate. That was two months ago, and Ginny had already gone out seven different nights. Each time, she got just as dressed up, but her clothes got slinkier and slinkier.

Harry noticed. Of course he noticed. It was hard not to notice when the woman you love puts on her low cut, lace black top, with heals making her reach the height from tiny to almost average. The first few times, he asked her to stay, kissed her neck, whispered in her ear, and each time, she would giggle and promise him the next night.

Despite the fact that he never said it out loud, she had a feeling that he knew Ginny was up to something.

And even though Ginny was ready to scream it to the world, no one would ever ask the wizarding worlds heros love if she was sneaking around.

No one would ask if she'd go to a different club each time, always dancing around the edge, waiting for a guy. Waiting for a guy who would come up behind her, joining the dance. A guy who'd gradually come closer and closer to her, making it so that before long, even air had trouble getting between the pair.

And it never failed. The two would work their way out the door, usually just to a back alley, and come even closer than they would when they were dancing. The first kiss was the only moment when she was truly nervous. The moment that broke that crossed the line from being a little too close to actually...

Cheating. If anyone had asked Ginny if she ever cheated on Harry, she probably would have confessed. If Harry had ever looked her in the eye as she put in the extra time to impress someone else, there's a chance she would have stayed in and spent her extra time on him. But of course he never did.

It was only natural that by the third night going out without her friends, Ginny ended up having sex with a stranger in the alley behind the club instead of just kissing and teasing. She wasn't proud. In fact, she was disgusted with herself the next day, but at the time...

At the time she felt powerful, beautiful and wanted. There was this guy, someone who probably spent more time getting ready for this night than she did with his hands sliding down her back, over her hip, up her skirt...

At the same time, back at their shared little flat that night, Harry had been in bed, completely alone, just reading a book. He was fighting sleep, trying to stay awake, wanting to ask if Ginny had fun that night, if she'd e going anytime soon.

He fell asleep before she arrived back home.

Even on this night, Ginny felt guilt. Despite this type of thing almost becoming routine, she felt guilty for hurting Harry. He knew. He had to know something was up. But no matter what she told herself, she knew his mind wouldn't go over to this.

"What's your name?" the stranger hissed into her ear between kisses as the two strangers stood in the alley, Ginny's usual spot.

"What?" this wasn't how it went, no names were ever exchanged at this moment. It was impersonal, if it was impersonal, it wasn't meant to hurt him, it was just a stupid mistake.

"Your name." he repeated, not bothering to brush his honey colored hair out of his eyes as he spoke. His arms were strong, she could feel that his arms were clearly defined through his shirt as he held her close, kissing her neck. It was getting cold, she needed his body heat.

"Why do you need to know my name?" her voice was hushed, almost carried away into the night by the wind the same way trash was swept away by the wind when no one was around to clean it up.

"I don't like to take strangers home." Home? She couldn't go home with him. That wasn't an option. If she went home with him, it would officially be cheating. Weasleys were loyal, they were reliable, they were good people.

"Deana." Ginny hissed back, moving her hand over his chest so she could feel his heart pound as the small popping sound of apparation surrounded them.

This time he stayed up all night, Harry sat up, waiting with the book he had attempted to finish every night that Ginny went out not even half way done. This time he was able to watch the clock slowly tick away and the moon fall away as the sun emerged bringing with it a new day and old truth.

He had to leave.

Ginny didn't shower at Todd's house, that was his name. The honey colored hair guy. He had a nice flat, modestly decorated, no roommates, no pictures of family around. Ginny just got dressed, putting back on her low cut top, her short skirt, and swept her hair back up into place. He offered her breakfast, but she wasn't hungry. She didn't think she could stomach anything after hearing the name "Deana" be yelled all night.

She just apparated home, to the falt she shared with Harry. She walked in, planning her reason for being out all night before she had to explain on the spot. But as soon as she saw a little note left on the kitchen counter, she knew what had happened. She just read the note and left.

"Now, Harry, dear, I know she has a good reason! Ginny is a good girl, it's probably just stress from work making her stay out this late." Mrs Weasley reasoned, making an extra large breakfast as she kept an eye on the thin boy who she saw, instead of a man who had been through too much in his life.

"Yeah, you know Gin, with her luck, she lost her watch and has spent the whole night looking for it," Fred started,

"and thus, she doesn't realize how late it is!" George finished. They were both eager to make Harry feel better, which is exactly why their father had very quietly sent for them, and Ron and Hermione.

"Sure." Harry half heartedly agreed, not looking anyone in the eye.

Ginny stood outside the front door of the Burrow, reading the note one last time before getting the nerve to go in.

_couldn't stay here, went to your parents, no othe place to go. no family. _

"He couldn't even use decent grammar." she muttered to herself, and the pushed the door open.

"Ginny?" a very pale Molly questioned, poking her head out the kitchen door.

"Hey, Mum." Ginny croaked, her voice was sore from being up late. "He here?"

"Oh, Ginny..." wasn't the answer Ginny was looking for, but she wasn't surprised. Her clothes were hardly what she wanted to wear in front of her mother, and her already too much make up was smudged, but probably worst of all was the fact that Ginny knew she smelled like sex. There was a chance that Ginny could have easily been mistaken for a hooker at that moment.

"You came," was all Harry said as he walked out of the kitchen, the twins following.

Ginny nodded, trying to watch her father's eyes fill with shame as he walked into the livingroom from the backyard with Hermione and Ron, where they could easily see the whole scene.

"Just ask." Ginny finally said, her voice slightly defeated, looking Harry in the eye, despite his attempts to turn away.

"What do you want me to ask?" he responded, the rage that would have filled him in his younger days was long gone.

"You know exactly what you should be asking! You should want to know why I'm going out so much! Why I'd wear these clothes if I was just going out with friends! Why I am wearing so much damned make up! And obviously, why the hell do I smell like sex!" Ginny finally screamed, the dam bursting.

For all that time, she didn't know if he cared anymore. He had encouraged her to go out. It hadn't taken long for him to stop asking if she had fun, just if she'd go again. He didn't want to know where she went, who she was with, what she did. This wasn't the way her Harry was. Her Harry would stop her, tell her to change, or make her stay, and if she didn't, her Harry would track her down.

This boy in front of her, with the sad green eyes, just stood there, never trying.

"Well? Why?" Ron finally asked, his eyes flashing with a combination of shame and frustration.

This forced Ginny to look away from Harry to her family and Hermione. They all shared Ron's look, while Harry just kept standing there.

"Look at them, Harry. They want me to stop, they want me to behave, they don't want me to..." Ginny's voice dropped away.

"To what?" Harry whispered.

"I'm moving out. Finding my own place, I'll leave the keys on the table." Ginny decided. Confusion made its way to Harry's face, replacing apathy.

"Why? Why are you leaving? What did _I _do?" outrage made its way through Harry's words, the way it should have two months ago.

"Why? Because I have _fucked _total strangers in alleyways! I went home with a man last night under a _fake _name, and you haven't given me a reason not to! As far as I'm concerned, _you _left _me_! And right now, I know that you'll have the flat, you'll have my family, and I will have the stares of disgust and shame from strangers when this story leaks just because you didn't make me feel wanted." Ginny spat out.

Then she turned around, left her childhood home, apparated back to her flat where she packed her meager pocessions and moved in with the real Deana, who never asked for a reason, but Ginny told anyway.


End file.
